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Local D'lish: the Cream and the Crop

This is an excerpt from the full article “Local D’lish aims to be the cream of the crop” published by Live Green Twin Cities on June 30, 2009.

Local D’lish is a grocery and gourmet-food store near downtown Minneapolis that focuses almost exclusively on local foods. The care and planning that has gone into making the place both beautiful and inviting is immediately evident: Tomato plants greet visitors, and the warm, sunny walls make the little shop feel like a celebratory outdoor market; and the selection of foods and food products is vast and unique, made up almost exclusively of good, local, real foods made in Minnesota and surrounding states (Obsession Chocolates, made with fresh local ingredients in Wisconsin, are a particularly tempting find).

I was lucky enough to recently spend some time with Ann Yin, who owns Local D’ish with her husband, Yulin. Ann spoke passionately about local farmers and food producers, and although the store is clearly a labor of love, Ann and Yulin are also business people, thrilled to have opened a local market at the beginning of a wave of interest in local foods. As we spoke, Ann continually pointed me towards food producers and farmers, encouraging me to tell their stories, not just hers. But hers is worth telling as well.

Ann is a proud Midwesterner. She grew up in Iowa, and she believes it’s important to always know where your dollars go and to support local businesses. She’s also a proud Minneapolitan. “It’s the best of both worlds,” she says, referring to the fact that she lives in the city (Northeast Minneapolis), but is within 50 miles of several farms and beautiful countryside. No one in Ann’s family was a farmer - much less an organic farmer - but for as long as Ann can remember, she’s wanted to be one. For her, opening a store that supports them is the next best thing.

Local D’Lish is located at:

208 North 1st. Street Minneapolis, MN 55401 phone: 612-886-3047

The store also has a satellite location each Saturday at the Mill City Farmers Market, where Ann and friends sell a smaller collection of what’s in the store, including fresh milk, butter, eggs, and meat.